Paper book? E-book?

     I do not believe that book lovers should be afraid of electronic books and e-readers.  I love my library of paper books.  I love the smell, the feel and just sitting in my study recliner looking at them in the bookcases.  I take great comfort in there existence and the fact that they are mine! I know how many years I could read before I had to start repeating if I am unable to buy more.  I know which books I would take if I could take only one box full, or an arm full or only two books if it were TEOTWAWKI. (Dear God forbid it! Two books? I shudder.) I find it hard to believe paper books will disappear because of Amazon and the fact that I have a Kindle.
   
    Am I wrong? 

    I have already purchased one of my e-books in hardback because I know it is a re-read and that means I NEED a paper copy. I think I will continue to do so.  I love dropping my Kindle into my purse and knowing I have almost one hundred books at my beck and call with only the touch of my finger. But that is only until the battery loses its charge. I love browsing the free and cheap e-book list that is e-mailed to me each day, but, it is not the same as standing in the used book store breathing in the dust and old paper odors and that 'second-hand-book-smell'. It does not replace the excitement on the face of a grandchild when I say 'Want to go to Barnes and Noble with me?"

    I hope I am correct.

    My Kindle is in addition to, not instead of, and I would like it to stay that way.    

The Mill River Recluse by Darcie Chan

    Because I almost always read two books on any weekend, here is my second review.   

    The Mill River Recluse lives in a marble mansion atop a hill over looking the small Vermont town.  The people of the town know little about her and few have even seen her. She is the widow Mary McAllister who suffers from an anxiety disorder and from the mistreatment of an abusive husband.  We learn about her life, mostly from the memories of the elderly local Priest who is her connection to the outside world, and has been for 60 years. A priest who has an obsession with spoons . . .

            Though the towns people are unaware of it, Mary has had an influence for the good on Mill River.  She has, and will again, change the lives of those she watches from her bedroom window.  There is the local Deputy raising his daughter after his wife’s death from cancer.  We have a teacher who has moved to the town where no one knows she was once fat. And we even have an eccentric who makes love potions for Valentines Day.

    This was a good book.  It was heartwarming and amusing.  I do recommend it for a quick, pleasant read.

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill

    This was a great Gothic ghost story. The writing style brought to mind books from another time.  This style added to the eerie feel of the narrative.

    The story unfolds when Arthur Kipps recalls the events of an earlier time in his life after a family gathering where ghost stories are being told.  He has never mentioned to his family the experience he had with ghosts.  His haunting encounter happened when Arthur is a young attorney trying to advance in his profession. He is asked to go to the town of Crythin Gifford to attend the funeral of Alice Drablow of Eel Marsh House and then go through her papers and settle her affairs. From the moment he arrives he is aware of the adverse reaction everyone has when they find out why he is visiting their town and what he is doing.  He soon discovers the reason when he sees the woman in black at Mrs. Drablows funeral as well other mysterious sounds and happenings at Eel Marsh House.  Not to mention the obviously terrified property manager who will not set foot on the place.

     I am not easily frightened, but the book was eerie and I did jump about a foot into the air when my phone rang about 3/4 of the way through the book.  I enjoyed the spooky feel of the story and the old fashion quality of the read.

    A nice - and scary- well written book. Now waiting to see the movie  .  .  .

http://www.amazon.com/Woman-Black-Movie-Tie--Vintage/dp/0307745317/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1328134168&sr=1-1

The House at Tyneford by Natasha Solomons

In 1938 Elise is 19 and living in Vienna, Austria with her professional singer mother, Anna, and her father Julian, who is a successful writer. Life has always been easy and pleasant for Elise and her sister Margot, who is now married to Robert, but things are becoming dangerous. The Landaus are Jewish and the Nazi take over is changing their lives. Margot's Robert accepts a position at a university in California and Elise is hired as a maid by Christopher Rivers of Tyneford, in England.  Their daughters sent to safety, Anna and Julian await a visa that will take them to New York, where they assure their family of a reunion in the near future.

Learning to be 'invisable' and care for the needs of those who once might have been her peers, is not easy for Elise, but she does not give up.  Nor does she give up the hope of her family being together again, even as things in Europe grow worse. When the heir to Tyneford returns from school, he and Elise form a friendship, that turns to something more. And then the war begins.

I admit, I am a romantic at heart.  I prefer my stories tied with nice little bows and happy endings for all.  I did not get this with The House at Tyneford, but loved the book all the same.  Natasha Solomon brought each person, from the aged butler to Mr. Rivers, to vivid life. And there is, at least, a satisfying ending.

A very nice read.

http://www.amazon.com/House-at-Tyneford-Novel/dp/0452297648/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328134108&sr=8-1

The Hunter by John Lescroart

     Wyatt Hunt is a PI in San Francisco.  He was raised by a loving couple who adopted him as a young child. One day he gets a text reading: “How did your mother die?”  As Hunt becomes determined to answer this question, he discovers allegations of child neglect and an old murder trial that ended in a hung jury – twice.  This was his father’s trial for the murder of his mother. And according to whoever is sending the text messages, the killer is still out there. There are many twists, emotions, and tense moments before Hunt has his answers. And the answer involves an infamous person I would never have expected to turn up in this story.

            The Hunter was a good book that kept me going, but I did put it down and finished it over several days. The characters are interesting. I have not read any of the other Hunt Club books but this one stood alone nicely. I think I will be reading more about Wyatt Hunt and his friends.

The Bungalow by Sarah Jio

1942 and twenty-one-year-old Anne Calloway, engaged to her long time boyfriend Godfrey, sets off to serve in the Army Nurse Corps on the Pacific island of Bora-Bora with her impulsive best friend Kitty. Once there, Anne meets a handsome soldier named Westry and they find an abandoned bungalow on the beach. They decide to fix it up and begin leaving each other notes. Their friendship turns to love. Of course, there is a war going – and we must not forget impulsive Kitty, who brings unwanted events upon them all. Then there is the murder . . .

This story unfolds as Anne tells her granddaughter about that time in her life many years later. The writing is good and the main characters, the islanders and Bora-Bora came to life as I read. And the read was a ‘no-put-down’ six hours.

I must tell you, that when I finished this book, there were tears in my eyes.

Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin

A very unusual book . . . in a good way. It was a mystery, but also the story of two very different men who had been friends for a short time when they were children. Silas Jones is the constable in a small Mississippi town and Larry Ott is a mechanic and the local outcast, suspected of the disappearance of a young woman many years before. When Larry becomes the prime suspect in another case, secrets begin to come out, the least of which is the long hidden friendship of a black boy and a white boy many years before.

I enjoyed this book, but not necessarily the mystery part, though there are some good surprises as you near the end. I took more pleasure from getting to know the two troubled boys, who grew up to be troubled men. I also enjoyed the righting of wrongs, maybe after too long, but righted none the less.

This story stayed on my mind for many days after I finished. I recommend it and will read this book again in the future. Tom Franklin is a author who makes you think about what he has written.

Prayers for Sale by Sandra Dallas

     This is the story of two women living in 1936 Middle Swan, Colorado. Middle Swan is a small mining town in the Rockies. Young Nit Spindle and her husband are new in town where her husband has found a job at a local mine.  There is a depression going on and Nit is greatful for her husbands job and their new home, even if it is little more than a shack. Hennie Comfort is in her eighties and has been in Middle Swan since just after the Civil War. Hennie has resigned herself to the fact that her Daughter will soon be moving her from Middle Swan to live with her in a fancy big house.

     The two women meet when Nit sees the old sign ‘Prayers for Sale' outside Hennie’s house and asks to buy a prayer from her. The sign had been placed there years before by Hennie’s husband, but even though she will not accept money for prayers, Hennie sees herself in Nit and the two form a strong friendship. As the two women work at quilting, Hennie gives advice and support to Nit. Through her stories told to Nit, we learn about Hennie's life of heartbreak, hardship and joy. And there are even some unexpected twists that surprised me.

     I loved this book.

The Dry Grass of August by Anna Jean Mayhew

This story reminded me of The Help and The Secret Life of Bees. Anna Jean Mayhew is in her early 70’s and this is her first book. I am impressed.

     It is 1954. Jubie is thirteen and living in Charlotte, North Carolina. Her family decides to have their summer vacation in Florida, where her uncle lives, and heads south in their Packard along with the family’s black maid, Mary Luther. Along the way 13 year-old Jubie, who tells this story, becomes more and more aware of anti-integration signs and the racial tension.

     There is also the disintegration of Jubie’s family for her to deal with, something that is eased by Mary’s strong, calm presence. Oh, and there is a brief love/friend interest for Jubie, who always seems to come out with the short straw in her family when affection is being doled out to her and her three siblings. The life lessons, historical facts and a story that takes you where you least expect, made this a no-put-down read. 

   
I was a child in the 1950’s. I had forgotten. This reminder of how far we have come as women, as well as with racial civil rights, warmed my heart and then broke it.

I highly recommend this book.

                                         

Before I go to Sleep by S. J. Watson

     Every morning Christine wakes with no memory.  Oh, she remembers some vague things, like expecting herself  to be a very young women when she wakes, only to find she is middle aged. Not much more. She does not remember the day before, nor the year before, her husband, her surroundings. Each night, as she goes to sleep, she knows that the few memories from that day will be gone when she wakes.

     So, who do you trust when you have no way of knowing who is telling you the truth? At the suggestion of a man who says he is her doctor and is trying to help her, Christine begins to write in a diary which she reads each morning.  But the facts from the people she has contact with do not seem to match the glimpses of the past that begin to flash into her blank slate of a memory. Why is she afraid? What really happened to her?

     The suspense is well done - chilling at times. I could not put this book down until I reached the very surprising end.